Panel calls for testing out advanced parking meters

A citizen task force has recommended the city try out new parking technologies that could replace current devices, which are reliant on pocket change.

In a report presented to the Columbia City Council at its Dec. 19 meeting, the Downtown Parking Task Force recommended the city hold a 90-day trial period to try out newer, more advanced parking meters along Ninth Street. If the council agrees, parking spots on Ninth between Broadway and Cherry Street would be metered with a single, multi-space meter, and spots between Cherry and Locust would be fitted with more advanced single-space meters.

The devices would allow for payment with wireless devices, credit or debit cards and cash. The newer single-space meters could be installed by fixing a more advanced meter head on the existing parking meter poles. The multi-space meter would be installed at a central point on the block, and existing meter poles would be used to indicate parking space numbers and where the multi-space meter could be found.

According to the report — which was sent by task force Chairman Skip Walther to Mayor Bob McDavid — an advantage of the multi-space meter would be convenience: If several multi-space meters are installed downtown, a customer would be able to add time to their parking space from any meter, regardless if that meter is on the other side of downtown.

The recommendations were passed Nov. 30 with a unanimous vote from the task force. Currently, there are 2,001 parking meters in the city.

Carrie Gartner, executive director of the Downtown Community Improvement District, said allowing people to use plastic rather than pocket change could increase the likelihood they would pay to park. She said allowing more payment methods likely would cut down on the number of tickets issued.

“If there is anything that is inconvenient, it’s carrying around a pocketful of quarters,” Gartner said.

Adam Dushoff, a member of the task force and owner of Addison’s, said with more customers paying for their parking spots, the city might be able to bring in more revenue into its parking utility, which funds the city’s parking garages.

Dushoff said there is a perception that parking downtown is an inconvenience, and although he is unsure if better technology would make parking downtown more appealing, he said it would be worth trying.

“At least it will be a step in some direction,” Dushoff said. “And, of course, if it doesn’t work, we can adjust it from there.”